Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) has released its fourth quarter and end-of-year results for 2021 with net revenues up 9.4 per cent compared to 2020, according to PMI’s press release.

PMI has reported another strong quarter with net revenues for the full year up 9.4 per cent to USD 31.4 billion compared to 2020. The operating income lies at USD 12.98 billion, which is up by 11.2 per cent. In the cigarette and heated tobacco sector, PMI sold a total of 719.9 billion units worldwide during 2021, which was 2.2 per cent higher than in 2020. Cigarettes made up 624.9 billion units, slightly down by 0.6. per cent to the previous year. The amount of heated tobacco units increased notably by 24.8 per cent to 94.98 billion. PMI shipped 158.4 billion cigarettes and 25.4 billion heated tobacco units in the fourth quarter of 2021, up 2.4 per cent and 17 per cent from the same period in 2020.
"Our business delivered excellent performance in 2021, with strong underlying momentum driving total volume growth, high single-digit organic net revenue growth and double-digit adjusted diluted EPS growth against the pandemic-affected prior year," said Jacek Olczak, Chief Executive Officer.
"We were especially pleased by the reacceleration of our business in the fourth quarter to deliver better-than-expected results. This included a step-up in sequential IQOS user growth, as well as the outstanding initial performance of IQOS ILUMA. We also achieved essentially stable category share for cigarettes in the quarter, as our portfolio initiatives bore fruit and pandemic-linked restrictions receded in many markets."
"We enter 2022 with strong fundamentals, underpinned by IQOS, and exciting innovation to come across our broader smoke-free product portfolio. We are forecasting organic top-line growth of 4% to 6% and currency-neutral adjusted diluted EPS growth of 8% to 11%, which prudently incorporate the continuing uncertainty on full IQOS device availability and the pace of the ongoing pandemic recovery."